*

　When I opened my eyes thinly, I saw Shelly sitting on the bed with her back to us.
　The light coming in through the window was white and somewhat insufficient to illuminate the room.
　Even in the midst of that, I can see her clearly.
　That's probably not because of the effect of night vision (skill), but because of her white skin.
　At least that's what Makoto thinks.
　Shelly hand-combs her messy hair.
　The line from the nape of her neck to her spine is dangerously s*xy.
　It's like a painting or a scene from a movie.
　Makoto grinned, remembering last night.
　Sherry is a good woman.
　At the same time, she is a woman to be held.
　Her ripe body responds to the stimulation that Makoto gives it, and she accepts the pleasure that comes from it.
　However, due to her lack of experience, she is ignorant of how to get pleasure and how to give pleasure.
　I want to make this woman my color.
　Looking at her, such a feeling arises.
　Maybe this is what it feels like to be a painter with a canvas in front of you.
　Shelley rests her hand and reaches out to the bedside--.

'....Hey.
"-Oh!

　Shelley jerked and cowered as Mako stroked her spine with her fingers.

'Sir, you're up?'
What's the matter with you?
What are you talking about?

　Shelly tilts her head.
　It's a gesture of innocence.

'Cigarettes, cigarettes.'
"Oh?

　Shelley looks at the cigarettes - Mako's Marlboro and Zippo, as if to say she's just noticed - and then looks at the cigarette.

'You're harassing me,'
I smoke occasionally, too.

　Shelley said quickly.

'You're harassing me, aren't you?'
No, sir.

　Then he puckers his lips.
　It's a gesture to show that I'm m miffed.

'You don't mind if I smoke in my room, do you? What's the point of smoking in general, what's to be harassed about it?
I mean, look at the wall.

　As is normal for smokers, the wallpaper is stained with yuck when you smoke.
　But Sherry's room - a bedroom, to be exact - has no walls or windows stained with yuck.

'For the most part, Alan taught you how to smoke, didn't he?
You don't have to say that anymore.

　His white skin is tinged with vermilion.

''I'd love to hear at length what other games you've been taught to play.
'Don't mention Alan, please.

　I blurts out, "I'm my husband's woman," he says.

'He's the old guy, right?'
'Yes. I told you many times last night.
You just said it wrong. You're so quick to change your mind.

　He had to ask his body to recognize her as Mako's woman.
　And yet, he said something that made him think about Mako's future.

'Please don't torment me anymore,'
I thought you wanted to be tortured.
Shit!

　Shelley tightens her tone a little.
'So, where was I?'
That's what I meant by harassment.
'Yes it was, yes it was. I feel terrible about my defeat when Shelley smokes me, you know. I mean, you know what you're doing.

　I'm the little brother in the movie Tuckies, I poke around in my mind.

'You're thinking too much,'
I did it on purpose.
I don't mind if I do it on purpose.

　Shelley said with a sigh.

'No smoking, no smoking.'
'Yes, yes, I understand. You know, your husband is really childish in some weird ways.
Isn't that the girl with the childish man?
....

　Shelley is silent.

'Oh, come on, not again,'
I don't let myself think straight.

　Mako picked herself up and hugged Shelly from behind.

Just be honest, Shelly.
You're a brute in the morning. You'll have to be patient, sir.
Do you like the beast?
I don't know about that!

　Shelley said, her face turning red as she remembered last night.

'Well, you'll have to remind me, then.
Sir, you really need to bear with me.
That's not a very nice thing to say with your eyes watering. Well, maybe you'll change your mind if you do what I taught you last night?

　Shelly held her mouth.

'Huh?'
Okay. I understand...

　Already, Shelley's lips twitched.

*

　At noon, Makoto was sitting at the counter eating a karaage burger.
　When he ate the fried burger, the gravy oozed out of it.

'Your husband eats so happily, doesn't he?
It's because Shelly's cooking is so good.
Well, I'm embarrassed to hear you say that.

　Shelley's cheeks flushed with vermillion and she scratched her neck.

'The fried food is good, but so is the bread.
It's what your husband did for you.
Sherry was the one who did it.

　Until now, the bread at the Golden Fleece pavilion had been gray, but the reward for defeating Giant Skelton - wheat - had made it white.

''It might be a good idea to make it a part of your signature menu.
That could be quite lucrative.
It's your husband's soy sauce.
Well, yeah.

　I should have gotten Christine more miso and soy sauce for this.
　Next time I get a request, I might as well ask for a ton of it.
　I don't want to fight the other seven evils, though, because it would be too much trouble.
　As we were talking about other things, Shelly looked up the stairs.

'Good morning, Fene,'
Good morning.

　Huh, Fene stretched absent-mindedly and sat down next to Mako.

'How are you feeling?'
I'm feeling fine.
Come in.

　Fene took the glass from Sherry and drank it down in one go.

'Puh-leeze!'
You smell like an old man.
What?
It's nothing.

　Fene sets the glass on the counter and Shelly pours the lemon water.

'Brother, what are you eating?'
"Fried Burger.
I want one too.
Shelly, please.
Yeah, I understand.

　Sherry cut a slice into the pre-made bread and placed the fried chicken and lettuce in it.

'Here you go,'
Thank you.

　Fane chews on a fried burger.
　The next moment, two tails stood up against each other.

'Delicious!'
Oh, what are you eating?

　I looked up the stairs and saw Liv nearly coming down, scratching her head.

'I won't give it to you, okay?'
I'm not gonna take it.

　Liv said, miffed, and sat down next to Fene.

'Yes, please,'
Thank you.

　Liv took the glass from Sherry and drank it down in one go, I should say still.

'Puh-leeze!'
What's going on?
What?
Puh-leeze, huh?
What?

　Liv twisted her head and put the glass on the counter.
　Sherry poured lemon water into the glass and made a fried burger.

'It's a fried burger,'
Oh, that looks good.

　Liv slid her hands together and bit into the fried burger.
　It's really a dynamic way to eat.
　It's nice to see.
　Sherry looks at Liv as if she's smiling at her, perhaps feeling the same way.
　Liv flattens her fried burger in a flash and drinks half of her lemon water.
'Ha~ That was good.'
Food isn't a drink, okay?
I'm not surprised.

　Liv flushed Fene's sarcasm.
'Would you like a refill?'
I'll work out this afternoon.
Is it coming together again?
It's not a problem.

　Liv dropped her gaze.
　Out of the corner of her eye was Fene, who was chewing on a fried burger.

''It's bad if you don't practice the use of spirit arts, right?
Yeah, sure.

　Mako nodded.
　Fene is in a good mood and is using spirit magic to beat the shit out of you.
　You should practice it in the sense of checking your limits, instead of thinking that since it's the second time, you should know how to spoon feed it.

''What is it?''
We're talking about practicing necromancy.
Okay.

　Liv said with a sigh and Fene nodded.

'Come to think of it, Fene got stronger after kissing Mako, didn't she?
Yeah.
So if you and Laura kissed Makoto, would that make you stronger?
I don't think so.
I don't know.

　Makoto interrupted Fene's words.

''You've broken through the level limit with the kiss and you'll even be able to use spirit arts. Mako and Se-
Hey!

　Mako couldn't help but exclaim.

'What?'
Don't talk about me like I'm some kind of a tool to be strong.
I don't mind. I want to be strong. Makoto wants to f*ck me. Aren't our interests aligned?
No, don't assume that I want to do this.
No, no, no, no. He wants to do it.　You're looking at my chest.
Well, I'm looking at you.

　Liv's breasts were at eye level, twitching and swaying.
　You don't have to be Mako to pay attention to them.

'Let's try one, shall we?

　Liv grinned and grabbed her chest and pushed it up.

'Let's give it a try, ain't it?'
You don't have the guts to know you're going to get it right the first time.
It's not a matter of grit, you know.
So what's the problem?
I'm in the mood. I'm in the mood.
It's a pain in the ass.

　Liv said disgustedly and turned her gaze to Shelly.

'Shelly f*cked Mako, didn't she?　What do you think?
I'm not sure I can take that.

　Sherry is red in the face, probably embarrassed.

'Do you feel empowered?'
I don't know!

　Shelly covered her face with her hands and ran off behind the counter.

*

　After finishing their meal, Makoto and the others moved to a clearing near the south castle gate.
　Fene was standing in the center of the clearing, while Makoto and Liv stood in the corner.

'I thought you were off today?'

　Yuka blurted out as she sat down on a rock.

'We're going to practice our spirit arts,'
Why would I...
It's time to use your skills.
I hope this isn't a water potion.

　It's a pain in the ass, but I won't talk about it.
　It would be even more troublesome if I did that.

''Well I don't want you to treat me like a water potion.
'You've gone through it, so don't get involved. For the most part, this is the only use for your skills.
You know how I saved your life when you almost died fighting the King?
"You know how many times I saved you in the Skeleton King's dungeon. Think of it as paying back the debt.
It's a joint front.
The burden was lopsided by all accounts.

　How many times do you think Mako has almost died?

'You should be chopped up too,'
That's your job!
This is not my job!

　Mako shouted back.

'We're both good friends, aren't we?
What?　No way.

　Liv said with a smirk, and Yuka countered.

'It looks like we're arguing, but what the hell, we're a team. See, it's proof that we're good friends, right?
.....

　Yuka grunted and shushed him.
　'So this is how I should operate.

'Yuka's the type to torment the girl she likes, isn't she?
Die!

　Makoto said, and Yuka turned red and screamed.
　Of course, she was angry.

'Brother, I'll do it!'
The first thing you're going to have to do is to share your gun!
Okay, okay!

　Fane readied his slingshot and fired a pebble at a tree outside the clearing.
　The pebble hits the trunk of the tree and falls to the ground.
　He continues to release the pebble in rapid succession.
　As soon as the pebble touched the tree trunk, it unleashed a jet black flame.
　The trunk of the tree crumbled to pieces and the tree fell over.

''Did you get a clear shot?
'It's okay. When you don't use the spirit arts, it's like guffawing, and when you do, it's like guffawing.
Yeah?

　'What's it like,' I poke around in my mind.

'Do you know how many rounds you can shoot?'
It's like ten rounds.
That's a lot for one day.

　Maybe it's because he used spirit magic until he fell down, but he seems to be catching his senses on the second day.

''You were pretty much the same way.
Me?
'He was using it out of the blue to take out zombies, and maybe that's what the power of the seven evils is all about.
Well, it seems to be your power. You have some use for it.
What do you want me to do next, brother?
See if you can use it without a slingshot.
Yes, sir.

　Fane tucked the slingshot into the pouch and spread his feet shoulder-width apart.
　Then he turned his palms up.

'Ignition (ignition) sss!

　Fene shouted, and jet-black flames erupted.
　The jet-black flames turned into a sphere - a human soul shape - a short distance away from the palm of his hand.

''Fene, can you wrap your hand in flames?''
What do you want me to do?
Remind me.
I'll try.

　As if in remembrance, Fene's eyebrows are knitted together and he is mumbling.
　About five minutes have passed and--.

''I can't do it!
'All right. Can that human soul ... or foxfire move freely?
I'm gonna try.

　Fane raised his eyebrows and took a step or two back.
　The foxfire doesn't move.

''........Foxfire?''
It's fine. It's fine.
It's a cheap name.

　Yuka cowered her shoulders as if to say she was dumbfounded.

'Stop, stop--!

　The foxfire explodes and disappears.
　Fene's eyes are black and white, as if she was really surprised.

''Let's do it again!''
Okay, okay!

　Fene replied cheerfully.